Between the Lines
by Ice of the Kitsune's Fire
Summary: The relationship Natsu and Lucy share will always confound Lisanna, regardless of time or space.


**A/N**: This is a companion fic to songstar13_'_s '_Inevitable'_. Go check it out if you haven't already- after reviewing this one, of course ;)

_"Because he is Natsu, he will always choose her"..._

* * *

><p>Lisanna talks to Edo-Natsu that day, when she is shaken completely and utterly, after watching <em>her<em> Natsu go off and save the day. It's disconcerting because he's all grown-up and strong, while she is fated to stay where she does not belong.

"Lucy Ashley missed you a lot," Lisanna murmurs to him as they sit together, sipping idly at drinks at a table. The entire guild is in a state of shock after having seen the bold bravery that the Earthland Natsu and Wendy displayed, in contrast to their guild's usual cunning and… cowardice. "You really were gone for a while." She works to keep her tone light, in fear that if she doesn't, Natsu will continue some sort of spiral into depression, because he is well into it at this rate.

"I know," Natsu Dragion sighs, and slumps over the table meekly. "I-I didn't mean to take so long… I just…"

Lisanna perks up in slight interest- Natsu had never mentioned where he was going when he'd disappeared the other day. For once, he was not following Lucy out on a raid or mission, and she had seemed particularly irked that day. Lisanna has watched them for years now, and she knows that they gravitate to each other's presence despite the difference in personality.

"For Lucy," Natsu finally manages to crank out, quietly, as he stares at his cup. "She's always talking about her father and how she's never known him, seeing as she grew up in an orphanage, but…" He gulps- Lisanna stares in a sort of fascination; it never ceases to amaze her how _different_ her two Natsus are, and yet they manage to display the same kind of loyalty and care she has grown to know and love. "I had to try… The look she gets in her eyes, sometimes, I…"

The affection that she has accumulated for this alternate Natsu allows pangs of jealousy to sink in, and something pettier that she doesn't want to acknowledge- the selfish hope that the Earthland Lucy and Natsu did not share this same, obvious bond that was as irrevocably a part of their character as the rest of their personalities were.

They sit in a companionable silence for a moment. It is clear that he is fretting over his words, probably anxious that Lucy Ashley will come back from accompanying the other Natsu and Wendy and kick his ass for suggesting that she is weak. Lisanna is bewildered.

It shocks her to see how they seem to understand each other so _well _when they can barely carry on a civilized conversation. Lisanna believes in things like 'destiny', and 'love'. She believes in people who are fated for each other, for the feeling of acceptance to settle warmly in her stomach and blossom over her body, because she is a romantic, and that is what romantics do- they believe in the feeling of being covered by the heat of romance from head to toe.

And yet, these two contradict that very belief. Lucy was rough whereas Natsu was soft, and sure, they were friends, but calm, soothing moments between the two without Lucy crashing it were a rare occurrence. Love wasn't supposed to _work_ that way- it was supposed to be something sweet and melting, it was supposed to be like she and Natsu were, back on Earthland: light and fluffy, with childhood memories and tingling feelings in the chest.

But even as Lisanna watches the light play in Natsu Dragion's eyes, she finds that she can read them just as well as she could with his Earthland counterpart- and she reads… worry. Concern for the person who always bullied him, dread for the possibilities.

"What if… she doesn't come back?" Natsu Dragion whispers, and Lisanna is shocked to even hear him say it, because if there is _one_ thing that he has confidence in no matter the situation, it's Lucy Ashley's tenacity.

"Of course she will!" Lisanna is quick to reassure, but Natsu waves her off, which is even more shocking, as he normally never has the confidence to cut someone off, much less hold up a hand without trembling.

"Th-that's not what I mean," he murmurs softly. "Lucy and Natsu Dragneel… they're so alike. I feel like… even if she comes back to the guild, those two… they'll…" He's fiddling again. "Even if she returns physically, what if… what if her heart doesn't?"

Lisanna takes a moment to think about this, and the sudden wave of jealousy and denial that overtakes her is nearly overwhelming. It's petty, it's shallow, and it's unlike her- she quickly dismisses it, because this is _her_ Natsu they were talking about, and even if this Natsu was sensitive and emotional, _her_ Natsu was passionate and _dense_. "Don't be silly, Natsu," Lisanna laughs it off. "They're different people, and from different worlds. They won't fall in love. She- she already has someone in her heart."

These words ring in her head, as if she's trying to convince herself of something. Natsu Dragion, who is easily swayed, nods slightly and returns to his brooding state. Lisanna, on the other hand, can already make the connection in her words for herself.

Part of her feels like she's just trying to convince herself that Natsu already has _her_, and that Earthland Lucy hasn't replaced her, that they haven't fallen just as obviously in love as their Edolas alternates have. Like she's trying to persuade her mind that her Natsu wasn't as unconventionally _tied_ to Earth Lucy as Edolas Natsu was to Lucy Ashley.

…That she still has a chance.

Lisanna bites down on her lip, recalling the look in her Natsu's eyes.

"_I have to save them_."

Them- or _Lucy_?

* * *

><p>Anima is beckoning to her very presence, tugging her soul to the other side. Anticipation is marred by horror; Lisanna desperately tries to console Edolas Mirajane and Elfman, convinced that they will break down and dissolve to tears.<p>

It surprises her when her sweet, sweet alternate sister clutches her hands gently and says, "We knew, Lisanna. We knew all along."

_She knew all along_. Lisanna bites back tears as she is sucked away, back home- they may not be _hers_, but they have bonds nonetheless. Lisanna briefly wonders how Mirajane managed to keep herself together all this time when she had every right to break down. She knew all along…

Her eyes pick out Lucy Ashley and Natsu Dragion amidst the familiar faces- they are standing side by side, their faces showing no hidden qualms. It pains her to see that they are so _bound_ to one another, and are unaware of it. Surely she and Earthland Natsu would have no such problem…

…but Lisanna can't deny the sinking feeling in her stomach.

The day after her return, Natsu does not linger. He does not dote on her like he did when they were kids- he hugs her, yes, and he offers words that are filled of excitement and relief, but they are nothing more than the platonic feelings that Lisanna has feared all along. Her eyes trail his figure as he bounds away, leaps at a time, and immediately starts teasing Lucy.

Lisanna finds it hard to adjust to this new Lucy, who is sweet and kind and easily embarrassed, and yet still holds the same care that Lucy Ashley does in Edolas. But this is not what is pressing on her mind.

Natsu gravitates around Lucy's presence just as much as his counterpart did in Edolas, as if she were his sun. When she moves, he takes an unconscious step along with her. When Natsu laughs, Lucy's own lips crack a grin.

It almost aches _physically_ when it hits her: her Natsu and Lucy are just as completely, quintessentially bound by the soul as they are on Edolas.

Lisanna allows a smile to grace her lips despite the pain.

Natsu is leaving the guild for the day, and for once, Lucy does not follow. Her warm, chocolate orbs meet with Lisanna's own clear ones, and Lisanna smiles brightly, quick to mask her inner turmoil.

"Is something the matter? Why are you sitting by yourself when you've just returned?" Lucy saunters over to Lisanna's table and returns the smile, just as brightly.

"Lucy," Lisanna allows her lips to drop infinitesimally as she speaks what is on her mind: "Do you… you wouldn't happen to like Natsu, would you?"

Lucy's jaw drops open almost comically, and Lisanna might have laughed under any other circumstances. As it stands, however, she just smiles sadly, almost regretfully, because she already knows the answer.

"I-I, that is to say, I wouldn't, well, I-" The blonde flounders wordlessly for a moment.

Lisanna suddenly has an unwilling understanding of her sister's Edolas counterpart.

"_We knew all along."_

She is starting to comprehend how Mirajane kept her cheery façade despite the knowledge that her true heartache would never really be eased.

(Lisanna acknowledges that sometimes, it's better that way.)

"It's okay," Lisanna reassures a near-frantic Lucy. "I already know."

She pauses before adding, "I knew all along."


End file.
